THE family of a 25-year-old man killed while walking alongside the A34 at Wilmslow have made a heartfelt plea for information about the last hour of his life.

His father called for witnesses after a verdict of accidental death was recorded at an inquest into the death of Michael Brown, a geologist.

Coroner Nicholas Rheinberg heard he died after being hit by two cars on December 16, 2000 as he staggered along the unlit dual carriage after a night out with pals.

The graduate, who was on leave from his job on a North Sea oil rig, had been out with friend James O'Halloran. He was due to stay overnight at his home in Didsbury.

At 11pm on December 15, 2000 the pair walked into The Rectory bar, after spending the evening drinking at the Sam Finney pub.

The last known contact James had with Michael was a missed call on his mobilephone shortly after 11.30pm.

Emergency services responded to a 999 call at 12.20am and arrived 10 minutes later to find Michael lying in the road already dead.

John Kallinicos, Michael's cousin, said the inquest left a lot of questions unanswered.

"Nobody knows what happened to Michael in the hour leading up to his death.

"We don't know when or why he left the Rectory. We don't know whether he was alone and we don't know why he decided to walk all the way back to Didsbury without his friend. He had £20 and a cash card in his pocket, he could have at least got a taxi."

Despite the coroner's verdict, John believes that his cousin could have been a victim of crime.

"He had bruises on his face that the pathologist couldn't account for. Witnesses who saw him walking down the A34 said he was behaving strangely, walking like he was climbing a ladder.

"He was an intelligent lad who could handle drink. He wasn't the sort to take risks.

"We think he was punched and could have been suffering from concussion."

The Brown family, from Oldham Road, Manchester, is desperate for information about Michael's last hour.